Effectiveness of Distraction Cards in Reducing Pain During Peripheral Intravenous Cannulation in School-Age Children: A Randomised Controlled Trial

Background: Following ethical and legal professional obligations, nurses should use evidence-based methods to enhance the patient experience during intravenous cannulation. Non-pharmacological pain management techniques are now used in the clinical setting and can be performed without additional cost or time. Therefore, this study targets alleviating pain during intravenous cannulation procedures. Objectives: To investigate the effects of distraction cards in reducing peripheral intravenous cannulation-related pain among school age children. Methods: A comparative and prospective randomised controlled trial was employed. The study was carried out on 148 school-age children who had Peripheral Intravenous Cannulation (PIVC). Patients were divided into two groups randomly: the Distraction Cards group (n = 71) and the control group (n = 77). Immediately after the PIVC procedure, the patients were asked to rate their level of pain by using the Wong-Baker Faces Pain Scale. Results: Pain intensity was significantly lower in the Distraction Cards group compared to the control group (p < 0.001), with a mean difference of 2.27. Conversely, the control group exhibited moderately higher pain scores (mean difference = 3.23) relative to the Distraction Cards group. Conclusion: Distraction cards are effective in relieving pain during IV cannulation. Similar experimental studies in larger children community samples are recommended to provide stronger evidence of their effectiveness.